Chapter 1: Burned by Rejection, Reborn Again

I’ve tried to win over Caleb Foster five times.

Each time, I wore a different face.

Each time, I was beautiful. But every time, the hope in my chest burned out a little faster.

The last time, he looked down at me from above and said:

"Natalie, stop chasing. Even if you turned to ashes, I’d still recognize you.

Let me tell you, even if I jumped off here, I still wouldn’t be with you."

His words landed like a sucker punch. The wind up on the overlook whipped my hair around, but I barely felt it, numb to everything except the echo of his rejection.

I just waited for the system to erase me again.

When I woke up, the system chimed in:

[Host, do you want to change your strategy target?]

I almost laughed. What was the point? But the alternative was oblivion.